


While I'm Away

by Dragonflies_and_Katydids



Series: Dawn [10]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, no really very light
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-08
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-30 12:38:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5164124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonflies_and_Katydids/pseuds/Dragonflies_and_Katydids
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dorian and Bull are off on Inquisition business.  Cullen's not sulking.  He's <em>not</em>.</p>
<p>Some fluff to counteract the last story I posted.  Takes place about six months after <em>Exit Light</em> (give or take).</p>
            </blockquote>





	While I'm Away

**Author's Note:**

> Close your eyes and I'll kiss you  
> Tomorrow I'll miss you  
> Remember I'll always be true  
> And then while I'm away  
> I'll write home every day  
> And I'll send all my loving to you
> 
> John Lennon & Paul McCartney, "All My Loving"

As days go, it isn't the worst Cullen's ever had, but neither is it the best. That he can't even say why it's bad only frustrates him more, leaving him short-tempered as Josephine and Leliana argue over the details of the Inquisition's delegation to Antiva. He tries to pay attention, but his part in the discussion is long since finished: he knows where his soldiers need to be and when they need to be there, and no one is foolish enough to tell him which soldiers or how many.

He almost wishes they would. At least then he'd have an excuse to snap at someone.

Before he gives in to that temptation, he steps into a momentary pause in the conversation to say, "Do you need me for anything else? I'm happy to stay, but I left a stack of letters on my desk that really do need to be answered today."

A distracted wave of the Inquisitor's hand grants him the reprieve, and he hurries from the war room before anyone can think of a reason he needs to stay. Not that there's any reason to hurry. Dorian left this morning as part of the Inquisition's delegation to Tevinter, and though Cullen knows he'll be back, that return is at least a month away. A few hours after the delegation left, Bull took the Chargers out on some kind of training exercise, which Cullen knows is an excuse to escape Skyhold and hit things for a few days. So while he does have letters on his desk to attend to, he also has all the time he needs and more. What else is he going to do with his evening?

Now that he thinks about it, maybe he does know why he's in a bad mood, even if the reason isn't terribly logical.

It's not as if they haven't been apart before, and he's always made it through. They've even been apart for long stretches of time, longer than a month and far longer than the three or four days Bull will be gone. Cullen is mostly past the days when a night alone left him staring at the door to the mages' tower and thinking about the view from the top, but just because he doesn't need them to keep him safe anymore doesn't mean he likes it when they're gone.

The paperwork on his desk has multiplied, as it always does whenever he takes his eyes off it for even a second, but it only holds his attention long enough for him to measure the pile before a commotion from upstairs makes him frown. He can't see anything past the ladder, so he climbs up, curiosity momentarily stronger than his bad mood.

His bedroom is full of people. Workers, to be precise, climbing over scaffolding that was _not_ there this morning, and calling instructions and insults to each other in cheerful voices that would irritate him if he wasn't too busy being confused.

One of them spots him and swings down to stand in front of him. "Morning, Commander!" he says. "We'll be done by dark, don't you worry."

"Done?" Cullen says stupidly, and gets a strange look in return.

"Done with your roof. We'd have fixed it months ago, if we'd known what shape it was in." His tone is somewhere between defensive and apologetic.

"I had other things on my mind," Cullen says.

Which earns him a look that makes it clear the man thinks he's more than a little crazy. "Well, it'll be good as new by tonight. Though if you don't mind, it'll go quicker if we don't have to worry about dropping anything on your head."

Cullen takes the hint and climbs back down the ladder. Mairyn must have asked someone to see to it, though Cullen doesn't remember mentioning it to her. He's trying to decide if he's grateful she took the initiative or annoyed at her intrusion when he finds the letter on his chair.

It's unsealed and there's nothing on the outside to indicate who it's for, but as it's sitting in his chair, Cullen unfolds it without a second thought. He recognizes Dorian's handwriting immediately, the letters tiny but perfectly formed.

 

> _Commander:_
> 
> _I don't like being cold, and your room is almost as warm as standing in the snow. While it was tempting to simply refuse to set foot in it again, I settled on a compromise. I hope you'll humor me and allow them to work. I'll make it worth your while when I come home._

 

It's signed with something that might be a D under all the elaborate flourishes.

For a second, the letter sharpens the pain in his chest, makes him miss Dorian even more, but then he reads it again and smiles.

He's still smiling when Bull comes in. Before Cullen can say anything, Bull squints up through the hole in the ceiling and says, "He got you, too, huh?"

"Dorian?"

"Of course Dorian," Bull says with a snort. "If I'd wanted my roof fixed, I'd've fixed it myself." He sounds affectionate, almost pleased, rather than annoyed. "They'd better be done by tonight, that's all I have to say."

"I thought you and the Chargers would be gone all week," Cullen says.

Bull shrugs one shoulder. "Krem can handle them. It's good for him, gives him a chance to be in command for a while." He comes around Cullen's desk to loom comfortingly over him. "Besides, I'm getting too old to sleep on the ground. I'd rather be here."

"I would have been fine," Cullen says, but he accepts the kiss Bull drops on his mouth.

"I know," Bull says. "And I'd have been fine, too. I'd still rather be here."

The words don't come easily, even after all this time, but he says them anyway. "I'd rather you were here, too."


End file.
